THE IRON KING by Julie Kagawa
Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Harlequin; Original edition (February 1, 2010)

REVIEW YYYY

I must begin this review by giving Julie Kagawa tremendous props for putting a new and original spin on a classic Shakespearean tale.

THE IRON KING is a well paced adventure full of story time goodness: A doomed romance, wicked faeries, a cat made of awesomeness and a place where modern invention flourishes all melding together to create something special.

This faery tale of Ice and Iron centers on Megan Chase a girl that cannot seem to fit in at high school. Thankfully she has her best friend Robbie to help make life easier, until an unwanted visitor comes into her home respresenting something unimaginable. Megan learns that she is the daughter of Oberon, King of the Summer fae and that in order to get her baby brother back she must travel to the realm of the never never. While there Megan finds herself trapped amid faery politics, danger and romance with a prince whom would rather see her dead than kiss her. Talk about having bad luck! Megan soon travels to the land of the Iron King with the most unlikely of companions, bonds and promises are made, but will it enough to save Megan's brother and defeat the Iron King? Perhaps?.....

I love a good faery tale and THE IRON KING was original with it's modern day feary spin and it had some memorable characters such as Grimalkin, the cat with killer wit and panache. I also admired Megan's tenacity and strength but disliked the amount of hoops she had to go through to reach her goal. That being said I enjoyed this debut novel from Julie Kagawa and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting adventure and originality. Now I cannot wait for it's sequel THE IRON QUEEN out later this year.